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How Weyrlinghood Works

While we do hope that the next 6 weeks will be a time for each and every one of you to enjoy RP and develop your characters, we do also understand that RL comes first. And so, there are two ways to be marked off for a ‘class’ during Weyrlinghood here at Xanadu. The first is to RP the lesson or class out with any of our Weyrling Staff, or the second to complete a scene that covers similar skills, these aren't meant to be distasteful, instead they are design to help you think about how you and your new lifemate are developing and interacting with each other and the rest of the class.

Your Weyrling Staff

Detailed Summary (IC)

Weyrlinghood begins in a magical moment when dragon and candidate meet, two becoming one in a single look which will change and shape their lives forever more. Coming off the sands your dragon's first meal is already prepared and you'll have your hands full simply getting meat into their mouths without losing a finger as they swallow hungrily. Lessons begin almost at once as you're directed to have them start chewing once the first edge of the hunger is sated, and when their bellies are past bulging the pair of you will waddle over to the barracks where the couches have been prepared for you and have your first rest. Those weyrlings who manage to stay awake are welcome to join the hatching feast the rest of the Weyr is celebrating, however most pairs just end up collapsing in the barracks that first night (or day, depending on when the eggs decide to rock and roll!).

That very first day will also be the last day you will be 'pampered' in such manner. In but a few short hours your dragon will be stirring, hungry again and grown visibly to your eye. You'll spend much of these first sevendays preparing meat, feeding, bathing and oiling your dragon as they grow incredibly fast. Sleep will come in small intervals as they nap, you'll find yourself adjusting to their rhythm, and the days will blur by. Slowly though, change will come and your teachers will be ready; just when you get a full night's rest, when your dragons start to stretch their legs and wings and look around their world, lessons will begin. These early lessons are more subtle, designed to support you in adjusting to this change in these first months and to help you deal with what it is like to have dragon sharing your mind and world.

As the months begin to pass your dragon will grow larger and stronger, their walking will become steady, and their jaws exercised by chewing, strong enough to begin to tear at larger pieces of meat, and then finally tear and eat meat straight from a carcass and even begin to peer over the fence at the herds themselves. This will relieve you of much burden, but if you thought you might have free time instead, you'd best think again. Now the focus turns to understanding your dragon better, getting to know their anatomy, their history, nutrition needs and of course their proper care. If ever you were lacking in any component you'll not be spared for the needs of your bond must be attended to. As your dragon grows, its personality will begin to bloom as well. Curiosity for the world is quite normal, and questions often fly about. You must remember they are still babies, soon enough bigbig babies, but babies none the less. They'll laugh, and cry and the occasional temper tantrum isn't entirely unknown as they grow up.

Your own needs must not be neglected during this period as well, and you'll find your teachers as interested in your own well being as much as your dragon's. There are two parts to this whole and neither will be neglected. There will be exercises, both physical and mental. You'll be working up your knot that first day after hatching, and from then on you'll find ever more knowledge slipped in whenever possible. There are formal lessons, some evenings after the dragons have grown a bit, lessons in proper protocol and the history of the Weyr, drills in recognizing various rank knots and rote memorization of the names of all holds within Xanadu's territory. There are exercises as well, not just for your dragon in building their own strength and dexterity but the classic game of firestone toss is played around with a variety of fillers for the bag. Will you be lucky to get one full of feathers or will your teachers feel a tougher lesson is necessary and give you a bag full of rocks?

Your Life This Week (Briefly)

This week, all your dragon is going to want to do is eat, sleep and poop. Romantic, isn't it? What does this mean for your characters? It means that they'll spend most of the time doing the following:
- cutting up dead animals for Dragonath to slurp up
- cleaning up dragon poop
- rushing to the living caverns or baths while Dragonath is asleep
- wandering around slightly dazed, adjusting to the fact that their entire life has just changed

In the first few months, the basic anatomy of a dragon will also be covered - from skeletal and muscular structures to the concepts behind flight.

For your own purposes, you can examine these drawings, done by Bronze Dragonrider, and linked with permission.

RP Ideas

Some various ideas that you can RP around for this week:
- overfed dragons get all blocked up, which means that it's the weyrling's job to administer the purge. Not nice, but certainly interesting RP
- shoveling dragon dung
- butchering meat – it'll be dead, but whole when you get it. This might be a new experience for some
- rushed trips to the baths or living caverns for a wash or a feed – Dragonth won't like you leaving him or her just yet, so this has to happen at top speed while your life mate is asleep
- making your new knot, which can involve getting wrapped up in a whole lot of string!
- get a haircut, get a real job! Haircuts are not compulsory for weyrlings, but in between covering your dragon with oil, feeding it meat, shoveling up after it and snatching the odd moment to eat, there's not a lot of time left to wash and condition your long, flowing locks. Most people will end up with a short haircut, feel free to RP about it.
-bond building exercises (i.e. being blindfolded and following your dragon's presence to him/her)
- discussing / interpreting your and your dragon's shared dreams; getting used to having that mental bond

Setting Up Your Dragon

As always with a new object, there are a number of things that you should set up on your dragon to help you control him or her. As well as, of course, the numerous helpfiles to look through if this is your first rider on PernWorld to help with code.

You should all take the time to look over:
‘help puppet’
‘+help dtu rider’

In addition, you should do the following once you’re in the barracks:
@chown your new couch
@link yourself to your couch
@link your lifemate to the couch
‘Setup ’ – you need to make sure you’re in the actual barracks
@set =puppet
@set =commands